Front sight for rifles



ilwfii' bi HUUEE 33-253. OR 1903326 SR April 4, 1933- c w 1,903,326

FRONT SIGHT FOR RIFLES Filed Jan. 27, 1930 Patented Apr. 4, 1933 UNITEDSTATES PATENT OFFICE THEODORE IB. CRAWLEY, OF WEST POINT, KENTUCKY FRONTSIGHT FOR RIFLES Application filed January 27, 1930. Serial No. 423,799.

ice rifles, including a base with a sight opening therethrough andanauxiliary sight associated with the primary sight, and preferablymounted in the structure of the latter for pivotal movement transverselytherein,

whereby the auxiliary sight may be moved into axial alignment with theprimary sight opening or may be moved into the position in which it iscompletely housed and protected in the body of the primary sight, the

5 auxiliary sight including a sight ring on the end of an arm, whichlatter, when the sight ring is moved into axial alignment with theprimary sight opening, is at an angle to the vertical axis of theprimary sight, so that a clear vision below the ring sight is provided.

An exemplification of the invention as ap plied to the present standardmilitary rifle is shown in the accompanying drawing, in which Fig. 1 isa perspective view of the sight secured to the end of the rifle barrel.

Fig. 2 is a rear elevation of the sight.

Fig. 8 is a rear elevation of the front base member.

Fig. 4 is a sectional elevation on the line 44 of Fig. 2.

Fig. 5 is a side elevation of the spindle and the auxiliary or ringsight arm.

Fig. 6 is a fragmentary front elevation of the sight.

Fig. 7 is a view corresponding to that in Fig. 3, showing a modificationinvolving several auxiliary ring sights.

Fig. 8 is a front elevation of the sight shown in Fig. 7.

Referring to the drawing, the primary sight involves two body members 1,1' formed of steel having a generally flat sided ellipsoidal shape invertical cross section, the rear base or body portion 1 having anopening 2 therein adapted to form a relatively tight fit with the end ofthe rifle barrel, to which it is secured by means of the usual seatingrib on top of the barrel and a drift pin 3 which is driven in through anopening in the member 1 and traverses a transverse groove in the rib ontop of the barrel or in the barrel itself. The upper part of the member1 is provided with a longitudinal opening 4 circular in' cross section.

The front section or base member 1' is provided with a similar loweropening 2 which registers with the opening 2 in the rear base member andis secured to the rifle barrel by a set screw 3', the end of whichengages a slot in the seating rib on top of the barrel or in the body ofthe barrel, as more particularly shown in Fig. 4. The front base member1' also has an opening 4: registering with the opening 4 in the member1, the two openings 4, 4E constituting a relatively open front sight,when the two sections are rigidly secured to the rifle barrel and, asthis circular sight orifice is relatively long, it will be apparentthat, for shooting of the character other than fine target practice, itwill suflice if the person using the rifle view the object to be hitthrough the large aperture, along the rifle barrel, thereby obviatingthe necessity for careful aiming, such as is necessary with the oldertypes of rifle sights. However, the primary sight, consisting of themating block sections 1, 1, as hereinbefore described, is associatedwith a secondary or auxiliary sight, preferably including an arm pivotedfor movement transversely within the body of the primary sight, said armterminating in a ring sight adapted to be moved into axial alignmentwith the sight orifice constituted by the bores 4:, 4, or to be movedand housed wholly within the body of the primary sight, the movement ofthe auxiliary sight being effected within a sector-shaped recess 5,which is preferably formed in the rear face of the front base or bodysection 1, the upper portion of said recess opening into the sightopening section 4:. Each of the sections 1, 1 is provided withlongitudinal bores or openings 6, 6, respectively, which are inalignment and constitute a bearing for a spindle 7, one end of which isprovided with a slotted head and the other end having formed therein athreaded bore to receive a locking pin 10. The rearward portion of thebore 6 is of larger diameter than the spindle 7 to accommodate a helicalspring 8 which is confined between the shoulder between the larger andsmaller diameters of the bore 6 and the head of the spindle 7, saidspring serving to force the spindle longitudinally of the bore until itis arrested by the engagement of the locking pin 10 with the forwardface of the front body portion 1.

The spindle 7 supports the auxiliary or secondary sight and serves as ameans for adjusting the latterto its operative and inoperative positionwith respect to the primary sight, the adjustment being effected bypartial rotation of the spindle. In order to detachably secure theauxiliary sight to the spindle, said auxiliary sight is formed with acollar section 13, which is engaged by the spindle and is locked to thespindle to permit sliding movement of the latter by means of a detent orslide 11 engaging a longitudinal slot 9 formed in the body of thespindle, said slide having an upwardly extending finger 12, whichengages a recess formed in the interior wall of the collar member 13.The auxiliary sight also includes a shank 15, which terminates in arelatively small annulus or ring sight 16. In the partic' ular form ofthe invention shown, in which the shank 15 is radially disposed withrespect to the collar section 13, the bores 6, 6 in which the spindle 7is journaled are ofi'set laterally with respect to the vertical axis ofthe primary sight or to one side of a plane passing through thelongitudinal axes of the bores or openings 2, 2' and 4, 4, so that, whenthe ring sight 16 is moved into axial alignment with the primary sightaperture, formed by the bores 4, 4', the shank 15 will lie to one sideof the vertical axis of the primary sight and thereby permit a clearvision below the ring sight 16, as more particularly shown in Figs. 2, 3and 6. This disposition and arrangement of the auxiliary sight enablesthe user to get a clear view of the target through the ring sight andcompletely avoids the blurring or obscuring of the target by the shank,which is a common fault of the ordinary ring sight, when it is mountedon a shank normal to the axis of the rifle barrel.

In order to lock the auxiliary sight in its operative position and alsoin its inoperative position, the front face of the member 1 is providedwith two slots 20 and 21 disposed radially with respect to the bore 6,into which the projecting end of the pin 10 snaps under the action ofthe spring 8 carried by the spindle 7. In order to adjust the sight tothe two positions indicated, the spindle is moved longitudinally in itssupporting bores against the tension of the spring by pressure appliedto the head and the partial rotation of the spindle by the tool engagingthe slot in the head of the latter, thereby forcing the pin 10 out ofengagement with one of the slots, so that, when the spindle is released,the

spring will retract the latter and snap the pin 10 into the other slot.During this longitudinal movement of the spindle, in either direction,the slot 9 in the spindle admits of the relative movement between thespindle and the slide 11, which connects the spindle with the auxiliarysight arm, without interrupting the operating connection between theslide and the sight arm.

lVhen the auxiliary sight is adjusted to operative relation with theprimary sight orifice, the auxiliary sight is rigidly held in thisposition, so that the ring sight 16 is in exact axial alignment with theprimary sight orifice formed by the registering bores 4, 4, and,similarly, when the auxiliary sight is moved to its alternativeposition, so as to be wholly housed within the primary sight, asindicated in dotted lines in Fig. 3, is likewise locked againstaccidental displacement. The primary sight is preferably formed of twosections, as indicated, so that the entire sighting mechanism may bedisassembled for cleaning or repairs and then reassembled without theuse of special tools other than a screw driver, such as usually formspart of the equipment furnished with a firearm of this character.

It will be particularly noted that all of the elements of the compoundsight are of sturdy construction that will withstand even the roughusage of field service without danger of impairmentand also that themore delicate auxiliary sight with its mounting and operatingaccessories are housed within the body of the primary sight, so thatdamage or impairment of any of these parts is practically impossible.

lVhile for ordinary usage, the auxiliary sight will include only asingle ring sight 16, it may be found desirable to provide the auxiliarysight with a number of ring sights of varying apertures, so as to adaptthe sight for use in accurate firing at different ranges or at targetsof varying sizes. Such a modification is illustrated in Figs. 7 and 8,in which the structure of the primary sight is substantiallyidenticalwith that illustrated in the preceding figures, except that thebody portion of the primary sight is made a little wider and the recess5 in the rear face of the front member of the primary sight is madecircular to accommodate the radiating or spider-like arrangement of theauxiliary sight, the latter comprising, in the instance shown, fiveradiating arms formed integrally with the central collar or hub section13, the arms terminating in sight rings 16 16 16 16 and 16 any one ofwhich may be brought into axial alignment with the primary sight orificeby properly rotating the spindle 7, the primary sight being locked inany of its adj usted positions by engaging the pin 10 on the spindle 7with an appropriate notch 20 20 20 20 and 20 as more particularlyillustrated in Fig. 8. WVhen it is desired to lock the auxiliary sightin inoperative position, in which none of the ring sights is in 1alignment with the primary sight orifice, the pin is engaged with thenotch 20.

From the foregoing description, it will be apparent that the combinationsight presents many novel features of construction and operation andpresents many inherent advantages which are not to be found in any ofthe front sights heretofore in vogue. In the first place, the improvedsight provides thorough protection for all vulnerable parts. It isparticularly simple in construction and operation and requires nomechanical skill to mount, dismount or adjust, as these operations maybe performed with a screw driver or a section of flat metal, and theadjustment may even be efiected by the fingers of the operator bypushing the spindle against the tension of the spring thereon andturning the spindle by the locking screw with the fingers of the otherhand. The parts require no fine fitting or machining to functionproperly and the accurate functioning of the parts is not impaired, ifthe parts be come more or less worn. The application of the relativelyfine ring sight or sights on the auxiliary sight member adapts thedevice to targets of varying sizes without special adjustment, otherthan bringing the particular ring sight into alignment wi h the primarysight orifice, when more than one ring sight is employed. By reason ofthe shielding of the auxiliary ring sight within the bore of the primarysight orifice, the device is admirably adapted to both weak and strongeyes, as all glare is eliminated and the target will be brought out instrong relief, even when at a great distance. The disposition of theshank of the ring sight wholly to one side of the vertical axis of theprimary sight orifice provides a maximum field of vision around thetarget and avoids the blurring or obscuring of the target by the shankwhich would inevitably occur, if said shank were disposed in alignmentwith the vertical axis. The adjustment of the auxiliary ring sight inaxial alignment with the bore of the primary sight orifice constitutesan arrangement calculated to insure correct sighting by means ofconcentric circles. The sight, as a whole, is conducive to natural formin shooting with or without the auxiliary sight, in that, in openshooting, the firer will know that he is on the target as soon as thesame appears through the primary sight opening. When employed for fineshooting, including careful aiming at distant objects or targets, theauxiliary sight enables the user to get on the target in the shortestpossible time, as his view of the target is practically unobstructed.The compound sight may be readily dismounted from one barrel andtransferred to a similar barrel without the exercise of specialmechanical skill or experience.

Although the sight has been illustrated and described as involving abase element adapted to surround and be locked to the end of the barrelof the standard service rifle, it is to be understood that the base maybe so constructed as to be mounted upon and secured to the barrel by anyother suitable means, without sacrificing any of the principal featuresof construction and operation of the sight.

What I claim is:

1. A front sight for firearms comprising a base having a sight aperturetherein, an arm pivoted for movement within and transversely of the baseand having a ring sight at its end of less diameter than said apertureadapted to be brought into axial alignment with the sight aperture withsaid arm at an angle to the vertical axis of the base to permit clearvision below the sight end of said arm.

2. A front sight for firearms comprising a base'ELbiiSeeured-iol.thecgun barrel and having a sight aperture therein, anarm pivoted for movement within and transversely of the base said armincluding a shank having a ring sight on its end of less diameter thansaid aperture, and means for moving said arm to bring the ring sightinto axial alignment with the sightorifice and the shank at an angle tothe vertical axis of the b asfi to permit clear vision below the ringslg t.

3. A front sight for firearms comprising a base having an openingfitting the end of the gun barrel and a sight aperture above saidopening, an arm pivoted for transverse movement relative to and withinthe base having a ring sight on its outer end, and means for lockingsaid arm with the ring sightin axial alignment with the sight orifice inthe base or with the arm housed Within the base.

4:. A front sight for firearms comprising a base divided transverselyinto front and rear sections each having registering openings fittingthe end of the gun barrel and registering sight apertures above thebarrel receiving openings, means for locking the sections to the barrel,a spindle mounted longitudinally of said sections, an arm connected tosaid spindle having a ring sight on its outer end, and means for lockingsaid spindle with the ring sight of the arm in axialalignment with thesight orifice in the base or with said arm housed within the base.

5. A front sight for firearms comprising a base divided transverselyinto front and rear sections having registering openings to be engagedby the gun barrel and registering sight apertures therein, the innerface of one of said sections having a recess therein, means for securingthe sections to the barrel, a spindle rotatably supported in the base,an arm in said recess connected to the spindle within the base andhaving a ring sight on its outer end, and means for locking said spindleand arm with said ring sight in axial alignment with the sight orificein the base or with said arm housed within the base.

6. A front sight for firearms comprising a base divided transverselyinto front and rear sections having registering sight apertures therein,means for securing the sections to the barrel, a longitudinally slottedspindle mounted for sliding and rotary motion in said base, an armwithin the base having a collar surrounding the spindle on one end and aring sight on the other end, a key in the spindle slot slidablyconnecting the spindle and arm, a spring interposed between the spindleand the base, and a pin on the end of the spindle, the base having slotstherein to be engaged by said pin to lock the spindle and arm with thering sight of the arm in axial alignment with the sight aperture in thebase or with the arm housed Within the base.

7'. A front sight for firearms comprising a base divided transverselyinto front and rear sections having registering sight apertures therein,the front section having a recess in the face abutting the rear section,means for securing the sections to the barrel, a longitudinally slottedspindle mounted for sliding and rotary motion in said base, an arm inthe recess of the front section of the base having a collar surroundingthe spindle on one end and a ring sight on the other end, a key in thespindle slot slidably connecting the spindle and arm, a springinterposed between the spindle and the base, and a pin on the end of thespindle, the base having slots therein to be engaged by said pin to lockthe spindle and arm with the ring sight of the arm in axial alignmentwith the sight aperture in the base or with the arm housed within thebase.

8. A front sight for firearms comprising a base to be secured to the gunbarrel and having a sight aperture therein, a spindle ro-tatablysupported in and longitudinally of the base, radial arms connected tothe spindle within the base and each having a ring sight on its outerend of less diameter than said aperture, and means for locking saidspindle with any one of said ring sights in axial alignment with thesight aperture in the base or with all of said arms housed within thebase and out of alignment with said sight aperture.

In testimony whereof I aflix my signature.

THEODORE B. GRAWLEY.

